Uzumaki Mito - うずまき ミト
by Kasuke.Hagase
Summary: Uzumaki Mito gets way less appreciation than she's worked for. A jinchuuriki. A wise woman. A legend; it's all she's called. But how about a human? Drabbles.
1. Red Ribbons

**Red Ribbons**

**.:X.X:.**

**Drabbles**

* * *

Mito set down her cup of tea on the soft blanket, a light pink tint adorning her graceful features as her husband laughed in the background.

"Tsunade," She hummed, "your blood is more Senju than it is Uzumaki. It's a given that your hair-"

"But-.. But _Grandma_, I wanna have pretty red hair too!" Tsunade whined, stomping her foot. The five-year old pulled on her own blond pig-tails harshly, falling off of the pink blanket and onto the grass when the rubber-bands that held then in place snapped.

"Tsuna," Hashirama chided, "don't throw tantrums."

He picked up a rice-ball from the basket that was resting inside of the picnic-basket, before taking a bite, watching leisurely as Tsunade reached up to touch his wife's hair.

Mito leaned forward to accommodate her. "Your hair is beautiful, too."

"But it's not red." Tsunade complained, feeling the beautiful crimson strands. In her sloppy admiring, one of Mito's buns became undone.

It fell behind her weightlessly. Coal-black, shining eyes glanced at her husband appreciatively when he casually leaned over and snapped the band that held her other bun.

"That's okay, Tsuna. You should listen to your grandmother; your hair is really pretty." Hashirama smiled, picking up the fallen seals. Mito nodded approvingly at her husband, them exchanging glances when their princess's cheeks puffed out.

Tsunade would never admit it, but she loved hearing compliments from her grandfather. His status alone was enough for her to feel proud of him, but his charisma added to it more than double.

"It-It's yellow!" Tsunade whined.

"Blond." Mito corrected.

"A lot of people in the village have hair like this! But your's is _really_ pretty and not usual. Like- like one of Grandpa's flowers."

Mito's cheeks turned a dark shade of red when Hashirama flashed her a suggestive glance.

The Senju produced a flower crown - one made entirely out of red roses- out of seemingly nowhere. Not a second later was it resting on the blushing Empress's head.

Tsunade pouted at the display. "Uzumaki hair is awesome."

Mito turned to offer Tsunade a wry grin, "An Uzumaki's hair can be much less easier to manage than your's as it is." The Empress ran her fingers through her blonde granddaughter's soft hair. "It would be harder to brush and style. Hashirama, here, has to help me brush my own hair every morning. Its thick."

Tsunade huffed, puffing out her chest, "I can take it."

"Can you?" Mito inquired, smiling softly.

The five-year old nodded, determination sparkling in her chocolatebrown eyes.

Both her eyes, and her grandfather's eyes widened when Mito reached up and withdrew a pin from her fringes, before using the pin to elegantly slice 6 inches off of her waist-length hair.

"G-Grandma!"

"_Mito_!" Hashirama pouted. She _knew_ he loved her hair!

Her crimson hair felt neatly in her hand, shining in the sunlight. "Well then, Princess," Mito began twisting the hair, "handle it well."

Eyes shining with warmth and love, Mito gracefully bunched Tsunade's hair into a ponytail, before using her own cut and twisted hair as a ribbon, holding Tsunade's blond hair in place.

Tsunade was speechless, her jaw loose and her eyes wide, color filling her cheeks. "I-I.. G-.. _Grandma_.." She lifted a small hand to feel the bow.

Hashirama hid his smile behind the apple he was biting into, but it was becoming increasingly difficult when Tsunade was breaking into a grin.

Her fringes framed her face perfectly, cheeks a perfect rosy hue as she beamed at her grandmother.

"Thanks, Grandma!"

Mito grinned back at her, "Of course."

Her face was nothing to giggle at either; not with the wind blowing it at just the perfect angle and the sun shining on her head ornaments.

The Senju felt his face heat up with a blush and he promptly re-focused on the picnic basket. Obviously, he was already awed, but he knew how his mind worked best and he'd allow himself to be _tempted_ when Tsunade wasn't present.

Said blonde was twisting the petunias surrounding the picnic blanket into another flower crown for her grandfather to wear, too. She was struggling to do so with one hand, as the other was holding a half-peeled orange.

Mito reached for her granddaughter and pulled Tsunade into her lap, adjusting her kneeling position. "Would you like to hear a story about something that happened with my clan?"

"A-A story? A real one? One that really, _really_ happened?" Estatic, Tsunade was bouncing in her seat on Mito's lap, nearly throwing her orange at Hashirama's head in her excitement.

He caught it and promptly began peeling it.

"Yes, Princess." Mito reached for an orange of her own.

Tsunade squealed, nodding excitedly. Mito's red hair, now a ribbon of sorts, shined around Tsunade's ponytail. It made for a lustrous bow that shined brilliantly in the setting sun's light, complimenting Tsunade's soft hair excellently.

"Well," Mito began, looking up at the pink and orange sky, "it starts when I was a child.."


	2. After a Nightmare

**After a Nightmare**

**.:X.X:.**

**Drabbles**

* * *

A shriek.

A shrill, ear-piercing shriek.

Hashirama sprung out of his blankets at the sound, heart thumping. Blood rushing. In less than a second he had processed the sounds around him.

Rain. Thunder. Wind. Gasping.

It wasn't his own.

His eyes feel upon his wife; his shaking wife, who sitting up in bed.

Uzumaki Mito.

She was trembling like a kitten, eyes wide and frantic, chest heaving.

Breath quickening. Faster. _Faster_.

Darkness filled the edges of her sight. She was drowning. In what? She remembered the dream. Those red-slitted eyes. Sharp teeth bared; ready to shred her, to cleave her. Was it even a dream? What _was_ that?

She wished she could say she didn't know, but she knew.

She knew very well.

Hashirama barely spared a second before he had his wife in his arms. Rain pattered against the window.

"N-Nin-.." Her words were incoherent through her gasps. She barely felt her husband stroking her hair in an effort to soothe her. "Nine-.." She managed her first word through her quick breathing.

Then the shaking abruptly stopped. All was silent but the weather. _Foolish_. A voice - a low voice - deep in her mind was hissing insults at her.

The empress desperately tried to stop the flow of tears.

They slowed, but they wouldn't stop.

_An empress. An ambassador. Look at you._

She fought to silence the voice.

It worked. Yet she knew, the moment she let her guard down, it would come back. Roaring with vengeance, the voice would return.

She would be getting no sleep tonight. Absently - very absently - she wondered if she would ever see another peaceful night.

Minutes passed, all spent with her trying to regain her composure. The tears stopped completely, and her breathing was beginning to slow.

She still felt a warm hand, running it's fingers through her crimson hair. The scent of wood filled her nostrils.

Mito glanced down at her hands. They were still shaking. Silently, she agreed with her adversary. _Foolish_.

"Mito, I'm here."

But he wasn't the only one there. Someone else was among them. And _it_ would be with her for the rest of the way.

She clenched her jaw at the thought.

Endless pools of chocolate-brown leaked guilt. "I'm sorry." She didn't have to guess what had awoken her husband; her throat still ached.

Nor did she have to guess what he was apologizing for.

"I- I could've done something.. You shouldn't have follo- You- I-I could've-"

It didn't take a genius to see that he was trying to keep it from seeming like he was blaming her. Even if it was her fault, if she foolishly chased after the Hokage to a battle she had no business with, and she sealed the Fox of Nine Tails into herself - he still kept himself from blaming her.

He still held her, as if she really was innocent. _I'm not_, she thought. Why was he pretending? Did she really look that fragile?

Yes, she decided. She did.

But he still placed the blame on himself. Truly like a leader. But if they were to go by that standing, she left the village unauthorized, and sealed the beast within herself, despite knowing that he had a very sure plan concerning them.

No matter what way you looked at it, she was at fault, yet all he could seem to say was '_I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Mito. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm-_'

"Hashirama." Mito murmured.

Immediately, he silenced, biting his lip. The new Jinchuuriki looked out of the window, her beautiful eyes trailing the rain.

Hashirama held her tighter, "I'm sorry." He whispered. Earlier he'd just returned from.. _killing_ Madara.

He wouldn't - he _couldn't_ bring himself to let Mito spend the first night afterwards alone. Not after what she did.

Her breathing calmed. Glancing down, Hashirama found it obvious that his wife wouldn't be sleeping anymore through the night.

It was okay. He'd stay up with her the whole night. He'd wrap his aching arms around her and comfort her.

After all, it was her first night as Uzumaki Mito, Jinchuuriki.

_Inside the belly of the beast, hm?_ Mito placed a hand on her stomach, clenching it over the seal. _Oh, how the tables have turned._


End file.
